Willie Joe Heard

Willie Joe Heard, known as “Joe” by many, was born on December 16, 1927, in Chambers County, Alabama. He was the eldest of nine children born to the late Joe and Ruth Heard. Willie grew up in Alabama and later West Point, Georgia. As a child, he worked for various business owners in town, babysitting, delivering prescriptions, and running errands. He also worked as a caddy in a local country club. In order to support his mother and siblings, he left school to work in various jobs, including building golf courses throughout Florida and Georgia. As a teen living in West Point, Georgia, he met his sweetheart, Zelma Carr. After graduating high school, Zelma left West Point for Chicago, Illinois, in 1948. Willie arrived in 1949 and they married in October that same year. Willie and Zelma lived alongside friends from down South on Chicago’s West Side along picturesque Warren Boulevard. They had their first child, Donna, in October of 1950. They later moved to Douglas Boulevard in a historic brownstone and their family grew with the addition of a daughter, Adrienne, and son, Michael. Willie and Zelma were able to buy their first home on Cullerton Street in 1958. They had another son, Jeff, in 1963. The riots of 1968 changed their neighborhood along with many others. In 1970, they moved to Maywood, Illinois. Willie took great pride in his home and especially his landscaping. Upon arriving in Chicago, WiIlie found work with the Just Right Box Company. After the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was signed into law, he was able to obtain better employment, and in 1967, he began working for Jewel Food Corporation in the sausage department. He was eventually promoted to foreman and supervised two crews. Willie was well-respected at work. He retired from Jewel Corporation in 1984. Willie loved his wife and family, and he also made time for listening to jazz, watching the Chicago Cubs, and his favorite pastime, playing golf. His lifelong love of golf began in his youth. In his young adult years, he often participated in and won local golf tournaments. One of his greatest joys was playing golf at Pebble Beach in California. Willie received Christ into his heart as a child. As an adult, he began watching Bishop Arthur M. Brazier of the Apostolic Church of God and became a member of the church in 1994. He and Zelma attended Apostolic faithfully until health issues made it difficult to travel. In later years, he attended Garden of Prayer Missionary Baptist Church in Maywood where the late Reverend Johnnie Haynie was pastor. Willie departed this life in the early morning hours of December 11, 2022, just five days shy of his 95th birthday. He was preceded in death by his loving wife of nearly 60 years, Zelma Carr Heard; devoted daughter, Adrienne Heard; son-in-law, Lawrence McGee; three sisters, Minnie Strickland, Gaynell Brock, and Wilhelmina Foston; three brothers, Tommie Heard, Lewis Heard, and Stonewall Heard; and one grandson, Jeremy Heard. He leaves to cherish his life and memory: his loving daughter and devoted caregiver, Donna McGee; two sons, Michael (Loretta) Heard and Jeffery (May) Heard; two sisters, Doris Harris and Mattie Brown; granddaughter, Muneerah (Vizente) Freeman; seven grandsons, Corey Heard, Eric Heard, Sultan AbdulAhad II, Prentice Heard, Kevin Heard, Brandon Heard, and Darren Heard; five great-grandchildren, Trinity, Judah, Leryn, Miles, and Jaylin; and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, neighbors, and friends.

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